The patrolman stood and beckoned for the two detectives to follow him. He moved away about ten feet and spoke in a low voice. “This crazy dame says a man somehow stole her panties without her even knowing.” He grinned at Pine. “It reminds me of Light Fingers Brooks. He could have your wallet, watch and keys without you ever feeling a thing.” He glanced at his tablet. “Her name is LaVerne Tyler”

“Enough trash,” Lucy said. “What happened here? What is the victim missing? Did the unknown perp molest her sexually?”

The patrolman looked at the woman who was still talking to the reporters. The woman pulled her dress up mid-thigh for a camera shot.

“Hurry up, dammit. Tell us what happened before she’s lying down on the grass.” Lucy shook her head in disgust.

The patrolman quickly glanced at his notebook. “She said she met this nice looking man by the bench. They sat down, talked about politics and the war in Afghanistan. He had something in his briefcase that he wanted to show her. They went into that clump of bushes over there. He was talking low and smoothly to her and the first thing she knew, he had her panties off and was running away.”

“Oh my God,” Pine whispered. “Was there anything odd about the panties? What kind did she have on?”

Lucy tried to pull Pine away from the policeman. “Don’t answer that. Just introduce us to the victim and you can go.”